Help Please - Showtec Phantom 50 Spot LED [SOLVED]

[Uriahdemon]

Hi, I am thinking of upgrading my movers from Showtec Indigo 150's to the above. I set up FS and EV with the existing fixture files and when testing the FS built in moves i.e. Flower, Eight, Rectangle etc. Unfortunately compared to my Indigo's the 50 LED Spots are very erratic and I cannot seem to control the speed of the movements.

I was wondering if anyone has used the EV and FS files within the library and had any luck with them or did you have to build your own.

Thanks in advance as always

[BillsGate]

I own 4 Phantom 50's and control them with Freestyler. I haven't used the default shapes, I used the sine/cosine generator in the chase editor.

However, when setting the pan/tilt channels to Fade (not Snap), the heads move gently as supposed to.

What do you mean by EV?

[Uriahdemon]

Hi Billsgate, thanks very much for the info. Much appreciated.

What I mean by EV is Easy View 3D...??

What is your thoughts on the Phantom 50's, any good .....??

Also are you using the fixture file from the FS library or did you use your own 9 ch or 13 ch...??

I have never used the sine/cosine generator, I guess I should give it a go.

Grateful for any info you can give me.

Rgds

Mac

[BillsGate]

Easyview... of course

I've been using Phantom 50's for about a year and a half now and I really LOVE these fixtures! The light output is amazing, the colors are nice, it's really fast for a moving head (not as fast as a scanner though) and most of all: they are lightweight, both in mass as in power consumption.
Downside: It's still Showtec. The covers are made of real cheap plastic which breaks easily and requesting servicable parts or claiming warranty takes months.

I've created my own fixture file, after I bought them. You can find it here: viewtopic.php?f=79&t=4066

I prefer the sine/cosine tool because it's more managable than the p/t shape tool. As you might be able to see in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgsOz69MP8o my phantoms are mounted to a truss in front of our dj booth. Therefor I think it's pointless for the heads to aim the beam backwards. With the fx tool it's easy to prevent this.

[Uriahdemon]

Thanks Billsgate, all the info is very much appreciated.

I am picking up that if the money is right I should stay away from Showtec...... is that your opinion if you had a little more would you of invested in something else....??

I am looking for something to light up bands on stage so it has been hard to get some video to let me have confidence that the brightness will do this. Your setup looks great though given you are lighting up folks that are pretty close and also using other fixtures alongside the 50's.

Thanks very much for the link to the FF, I will take a look at that. Did you make that up for 9 or 13 channel...??

I have had a quick play with the sine/cosine tool but yet have to get to grips with it. I cant find a tutorial on the FS WIKI but still looking.

Great info and thanks very much indeed !!!!!

[BillsGate]

Don't get me wrong, I would definately reccomend these Phantoms! Especially for the price they are going for!
There is not much on the market that will give you more bang for buck!

Most of the videos on my Youtube channel are related to my dj-ing and will give you an impression on the phantoms.

Nowadays I use them together with four Eurolite TMH-9's: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovsWz0HShB4
These are very bright RGBW washes, sold at a very low price. The light output is amazing (comparable to a 500w Par bulb), but they are soooo sloooow. Given the enourmous amount of light these washes provide, it's quite amazing to see the Phantom beams still shining through these.

Somewhere on Youtube there's a video of a phantom 50 compared to a 'regular' phantom 250. Depending on the selected color, the 50 is slightly brighter or at least as bright as it's 250w equivalent. At this moment I can't find it though

As I recall, they are slightly faster due to the lighter body. The beam angle is slightly smaller too.

[Uriahdemon]

Thanks !!!!!

I think for the money I may be tending towards getting the LED 50's. I wouldnt mind a bit of help in setting them up i.e. fixture files and also how to use the sine/cosine creator....??

If you want to do that off line I understand but I will probably offer that up for the WIKI once I understand it...??

Rgds Mac

[BillsGate]

Hey Mac,

I'm glad to help out, although I think helping you out offline will be a slight challenge (and quite a swim too )

When you have the fixtures hooked up to Freestyler, the FX creator wil explain itself. I'd be glad to assist if you are running into problems.

[Uriahdemon]

Thanks mate...... a swim indeed but used to live in Belgium so used to that ferry crossing. Do you use 9 or 13 channel mode...??

[Uriahdemon]

HI, I have also noticed that the Pan 8 bit fader does adjust the Pan however the Tilt 8 bit fader does nothing. The only way to get the tilt to operate is by using the Pan 16 bit fader. With this the Tilt 16 bit does nothing either. Sorry, but do you have any ideas....??

Rgds

Mac

[BillsGate]

It seems like you are using a 13ch fixture while the lamp is set to 8ch. I have set mine to 13ch mode

[Uriahdemon]

Hi Folks,

Does anyone have an Easy View 3D file for this fixture please. The built in one does not correspond with the FS fixture file due to the Pan and Tilt channels being built wrongly. The FS fixture file corresponds with the manual i.e. CH 1 - Pan, CH2 - Tilt, CH3 Pan 16 Bit, CH 4 16 Bit.

Unfortunately the Easy View 3D fixture file is set up for CH1 - Pan, CH2 - Pan 16Bit, CH3 - Tilt, CH3 - Tilt, CH4 - Tilt 16 Bit.

Any help greatly appreciated as I am not too good with EV3D fixture creating and need to get this sorted ASAP. I am working on it though and as soon as I have it sorted I will share with others.

[Nathanrs93]

Hi Folks,

Does anyone have an Easy View 3D file for this fixture please. The built in one does not correspond with the FS fixture file due to the Pan and Tilt channels being built wrongly. The FS fixture file corresponds with the manual i.e. CH 1 - Pan, CH2 - Tilt, CH3 Pan 16 Bit, CH 4 16 Bit.

Unfortunately the Easy View 3D fixture file is set up for CH1 - Pan, CH2 - Pan 16Bit, CH3 - Tilt, CH3 - Tilt, CH4 - Tilt 16 Bit.

Any help greatly appreciated as I am not too good with EV3D fixture creating and need to get this sorted ASAP. I am working on it though and as soon as I have it sorted I will share with others.

+

Hey, I've had a bit of experience with 3D files and creating them. If you wanna PM me the manual or post it here, then I'll see if I can create it for you like the FS one is setup

[Uriahdemon]

Hi Nathanars,

Just spent a little time sorting stuff out and it was the Easy View 3D fixture file that was wrong. So I have amended it and all good now. I am doing some experimenting before buying the moving heads I am thinking of. What was actually wrong was the Tilt and Pan 8/16 bit channels were the wrong way round.

I should really have spotted that sooner.

Thanks for the offer of help anyway. I am sure there will be another time pretty soon.

Rgds Mac

[Nathanrs93]

Glad you sorted it